KO Digest: February 2012

February 23, 2012

The 2012 New England Open Class Championships

2012 New England Heavyweight Champ Sean Bettencourt

LOWELL MA - Lowell Golden Glove New England Open Class Tournament of Champions (2/22/12) FINALS results. Female 119 lbs: Melanie Costa W4 Nephateria Miller. Female 125 lbs: Rashida Ellis W4 Liz Leddy. Male results as follows. 123 lbs: William Foster W3 Elijah Peixoto. 132 lbs: Tim Ramos W3 Anthony Marsella. 141 lbs: James Perella W3 Rashidi Ellis. 165 lbs: Gerald Schifone W3 Khiary Gray Pitts. 178 lbs: KJ Harrison Lombardi W3 Jason Bukanowski. 201: Sean Bettencourt W3 Bryan Daniels

The Thomas F. Costello Trophy for outstanding boxer goes to James Perella. The Rocky Marciano Trophy for the New England Open Class Tournament Heavyweight Champion goes to Sean Bettencourt. The William "Bill" Hoar Memorial New England Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions Team Trophy is awarded to Southern New England.

KO Digest Fight of the Night: Sean Bettencourt W3 Bryan Daniels
Fighting at a significant weight disadvantage and with an injured tendon in his right hand, Sean Bettencourt upset the odds by defeating Bryan Daniels via decision to win the 2012 New England Open Class Heavyweight Championship. Bettencourt hurt the larger Daniels in the 1st, forcing a standing 8-count and he connected with several strong right hands in the 3rd to secure the victory.

Click HERE for 2/22/12 Pictures!

The Lowell Golden Gloves Box

Lowell Golden Gloves RESULTS from February 21st (2/21/12) In the opening round of the New England Open Class Tournament of Champions, results are as follows. Female 119 lbs: Melanie Costa W4 Amanda Provone. The following results are all male. 123 lbs: Isaiah Peixoto W3 John Lopez, Williams Foster W3 Jonathan Perez. 132 lbs: Tim Ramos W3 Josh Bickford, Anthony Marsella W3 Edwin Cotto. 141 lbs: James Perella W3 Casey Kramlich, Rashidi Ellis W3 Zack Ramsey. 152 lbs: Richard Ford W3 Alejandro Rendon, Jon Smith W3 Greg Vendetti. 165 lbs: Gerald Schifone W3 Emmanuel Figueroa, Khiary Gray Pitts TKO2 John Janiszyn (RSC at 1:21 of round 2). 178 lbs: Kevin Harrison-Lombardi W3 Moises Marrero, Jason Bakanowski TKO3 Dan Magistrali. 201: Sean Bettencourt TKO2 Jason Carrier (RSC at 1:14 of round 2)

KO Digest Fight of the Night: Cory Matthews W3 Jay Lussier
In a fight for the novice class New England 178 lb title, Cory Matthews dropped Jay Lussier hard in the first round with a right cross to the chin. Lussier beat the count and for the next two rounds these two warriors went toe-to-toe in an all-out slugfest, much to the delight of the fans! Matthews wins a hard fought, well deserved split decision to take fight of the night honors.

Click HERE for 2/21/12 Pictures!

Congratulations to all the newly crowned Golden Gloves Champions, and good luck moving forward!

2012 Lowell Golden Gloves New England Open Class Male Champions:

123 lbs: William Foster from New Haven, CT representing Ring One Boxing and Western New England
132 lbs: Tim Ramos from Framingham, MA representing Bancroft Boxing and Central New England
141 lbs: James Perella from Mansfield, MA representing Manfredo's Gym and Southern New England
152 lbs: Jon Smith from Cranston, R.I. representing Manfredo's Gym and Southern New England
165 lbs: Gerald Schifone from Brockton, MA representing Big East Boxing and Southern New England
178 lbs: KJ Harrison-Lombardi from E. Providence, R.I. representing Manfredo's Gym and Southern New England
201 lbs: Sean Bettencourt from Stoughton, MA representing Big East Boxing and Southern New England
201+ lbs: Owen Minor from Worcester, MA representing Camp Get Right and Central New England.

2012 Lowell Golden Gloves New England Open Class Female Champions:

119 lbs: Melanie Costa from Norton, MA representing Cruz Boxing and Southern New England
125 lbs: Rashida Ellis from Lynn, MA representing Sommerville Boxing and Central New England

February 17, 2012

The 2012 New England Golden Glove Novice Championships

165 lb New England Novice Class Champion Adam Paolino

Lowell Golden Gloves RESULTS from February 10th (2/10/12) In the opening round of the New England Novice Class Championships, results are as follows. Female 119 lbs: Elizabeth Erna W3 Rinisha Soto. The following matches were all male class. 123 lbs: Isaiah Peixoto W3 Richard Wetherell, Dominic Lessieur W3 Edgar Figueroa. 132 lbs: Francis Cotto W3 Nick Anderson, Ricardo Dellasantos W3 Ranse Andino. 141 lbs: Luis Mendiola W3 Matt Doherty (Doherty knocked down in 2nd), Roberto Colon W3 Alex Hight. 152 lbs: Jayson Richter W3 Jonathan Figueroa, Kevin Weeks W3 Angel Ortiz Santos. 165 lbs: Adam Paolino W3 Miguel Figueroa, Alexander Juarez W3 Jacob Sleeper. 178 lbs: Jay Lussier W3 Conrad Diaz, Cory Matthews W3 Ed Worley. 201: No fights. 201 plus: Donald Smith W3 Dylan Mess, Cassius Chaney W3 Ben Santos.

KO Digest Fight of the Night: Dominic Lessieur W3 Edgar Figueroa
West End Gym's Dominic Lessieur showed the fans why trainer Joey Ramalho thinks he might be a future World Champion. The first round was close but the crowd favorite Lessieur made the right adjustments in the second and third putting on a boxing and punching clinic to convincingly defeat Figueroa with an impressive performance to advance to the final round of the New England Novice Class Championships.

123 lb New England Novice Class Champion Dominic Lessieur

Lowell Golden Gloves RESULTS from February 16th (2/16/12) In the FINAL round of the New England Novice Class Championships, results are as follows. Female 112 lbs: Kelsey Kaiser W3 Kristina Carvillo. Female 119 lbs: Elizabeth Erna W3 Marcia Agripino. Female 132 lbs: Misty Gray W3 Kathy Urenick. Female 165 lbs: Alana Royale W3 Maureen O'Brien. ~ Following results are all Male. 114 lbs: Nathaniel Bettencourt W3 Jonathan Carrasco. 123 lbs: Dominic Lessieur TKO2 Isaiah Peixoto (RSC 1:14 of 2nd round). 132 lbs: Ricardo Dellasantos W3 Francis Cotto. 141 lbs: Luis Mendiola W3 Roberto Colon. 152 lbs: Jayson Richter W3 Kevin Weeks (Richter knocked down in the 1st). 165 lbs: Adam Paolino W3 Alexander Juarez. 178 lbs: Cory Matthews W3 Jay Lussier (Lussier knocked down in the 1st). 201 lbs: Brandon Montella W3 Justin Kennie. 201 plus: Cassius Chaney W3 Donald Smith.

KO Digest Fight of the Night: Cory Matthews W3 Jay Lussier
In a fight for the novice class New England 178 lb title, Cory Matthews dropped Jay Lussier hard in the first round with a left hook. Lussier beat the count and for the next two rounds these two warriors went toe-to-toe in an all-out slugfest, much to the delight of the fans! Matthews wins a hard fought, well deserved split decision to take fight of the night honors as well as the novice class New England 178 lb title.

For Pictures click HERE and/or HERE

Male Novice Class New England Champions:

114 lbs: Nathaniel Bettencourt from Worcester, MA representing Central New England
123 lbs: Dominic Lessieur from Lowell, MA representing Central New England
132 lbs: Ricardo Dellasantos from Pawtucket, RI representing Southern New England
141 lbs: Luis Mendiola from Bridgeport, CT representing Western New England
152 lbs: Jayson Richter from Portland, ME representing Northern New England
(Richter named the Outstanding Novice Class Boxer by USA New England Boxing)
165 lbs: Adam Paolino from Warwick, RI representing Southern New England
178 lbs: Cory Matthews from St. Johnsbury, VT representing Northern New England
201 lbs: Brandon Montella from Malden, MA representing Central New England
201+ lbs: Cassius Chaney from New London, CT representing Western New England

Female Novice Class New England Champions:

112 lbs: Kelsey Kaiser from Uncasville, CT representing Western New England
119 lbs: Elizabeth Erna from S. Boston, MA representing Central New England
132 lbs: Misty Gray from Amesbury, MA representing Central New England
165 lbs: Alana Royale from E. Hartford, CT representing Western New England

February 8, 2012

2012 Lowell Golden Gloves Roll Call of Champions

Novice Class Heavyweight Champion Brandon Montella

The preliminary, quarterfinal, and semifinal rounds are over at the 66th Annual 2012 Lowell Golden Gloves and there are new Lowell Champions to be named as the tournament now heads into the New England Novice Championships and the much anticipated New England Open Class Tournament of Champions. What follows is a list of all the newly crowned Lowell Champions broken down by weight class into male, female, open, and novice class divisions. Novice Class Champions advance to the New England Novice Class Championships and will face off against the other Novice Class Champions from around the region and likewise the Open Class Champions advance to the New England Open Class Tournament of Champions where they will face off against other Open Class Champions from the New England area.

The New England Novice Championships are scheduled for Friday February 10th and Thursday February 16th. The New England Open Class Tournament of Champions will take place on Tuesday February 21st and Wednesday February 22nd. For tickets contact the Lowell Memorial Auditorium Box Office at 978-454-2299.

Male Novice Class Lowell Champions:

123 lbs: Dominic Lessieur from Lowell, MA representing Ramalho's West End Gym
132 lbs: Ranse Andino from Worcester, MA representing Camp Get Right
141 lbs: Matt Doherty from Beverly, MA representing Ramalho's West End Gym
152 lbs: Angel Ortiz Santos Worcester, MA representing the Worcester Boys & Girls Club
165 lbs: Miguel Figueroa from Boston, MA representing the S. Boston Boxing Club
178 lbs: Ed Worley from Lowell, MA representing Ramalho's West End Gym
201 lbs: Brandon Montella from Malden, MA representing the Cyr Farrell Boxing Club
201+ lbs: Dylan Mess from Cambridge, MA representing the Cambridge Y Boxing Club

Male Open Class Lowell Champions:

114 lbs: Nathaniel Bettencourt from Worcester, MA representing the Worcester Boys & Girls Club
123 lbs: Jonathan Perez from Lowell, MA representing Ramalho's West End Gym
132 lbs: Tim Ramos from Framingham, MA representing Bancroft Boxing
141 lbs: Rashidi Ellis from Lynn, MA representing Somerville Boxing Club & trained by Rivera Bros
152 lbs: Greg Vendetti from Stoneham, MA representing Tomesello's Boxing
165 lbs: Khiary Gray Pitts from Worcester, MA representing Camp Get Right
201 lbs: Brian Daniels from Worcester, MA representing the Worcester Boys & Girls Club

Female Novice Class Lowell Champions:

119 lbs: Elizabeth Erna from South Boston, MA representing the Peter Welch Boxing Club
132 lbs: Misty Gray from Amesbury, MA representing the Sweatbox Gym
152 lbs: Maureen O'Brien from Hull, MA representing the Cyr Farrell Boxing Club
165 lbs: Alina Nalbandian from Belmont, MA representing the Sweatbox Gym

Female Open Class Lowell Champion:

119 lbs: Amanda Pavone from Burlington, MA representing the Peter Welch Boxing Club

Congratulations to all the new Lowell Champions and good luck moving forward into the New England Championships!

Images & Words by Jeffrey Freeman

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Lee Groves reads KO Digest at the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Cantastota.

The Ring Magazine's Travelin' Man Lee Groves also writes: "Along the way, we ran into the unmistakable 6-foot-9 frame of Jeffrey Freeman, also known as “KO Digest”. He and I always good-naturedly tease one another about our differences regarding Arturo Gatti’s Hall of Fame enshrinement – his advocacy of Gatti mirrors Paul Heyman’s of Brock Lesnar, while I believed he fell far short of the mark – but there always is a deep respect for the other’s acumen. That’s the way it should be; disagree if you must but don’t do so in a disagreeable manner."

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~ Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini

Editor's Note: Ray is in fact, correct. Though not a member of the more prestigious International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF), Ramirez is a member of the World Boxing Hall of Fame as well as one of the best fighters that Mancini ever beat. Thanks for the feedback Champ!

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KO's #TrumpClinton Pick

KO's #TrumpClinton Prediction — When George Foreman announced his comeback in 1987, they (we) laughed at him and said it was impossible what he claimed he'd do: regain the world heavyweight championship as a fat old man. As the wins mounted and the pounds melted, the media told you not to believe your lying eyes, that Foreman could NEVER beat Mike Tyson and that his comeback was all a big fat joke. Well, the joke was on us then and it's still on some of us today. Just as Foreman needed the perfect foil (Michael Moorer) to achieve his "impossible" dream, so too does boxing's own Donald Trump need Hillary Clinton for his. He was born to beat her like Big George was born to beat Moorer. On November 8, Donald Trump will prove all his naysayers wrong (again) when he wins the popular vote, receives 270+ electoral college votes, and KO's Clinton to become POTUS.

It Happened (As Predicted)

The Donald Trumps Clinton & Big George — As predicted, Donald J. Trump was elected 45th President of these United States last night. It was the greatest upset in American Presidential politics and a stunning repudiation of the rogue Obama-Clinton regime that had run roughshod over the world for the past 8 years creating terror and chaos in their wake. With 270+ Electoral Votes and many more popular votes, Trump is (and the new) President-Elect. We The People's President. Help is on the way in the dawn of a new day. As a near landslide, it was the greatest comeback since George Foreman knocked out Michael Moorer 22 years ago last week in 1994 to regain the World Heavyweight Championship in a shocking reversal of fortune. Despite all the evidence to the contrary, Foreman, like Trump, was laughed at, ridiculed, and his supporters turned into the butt of jokes. The best part about boxing and politics is that both give ample opportunity to get the last laugh. Congratulations America. You have saved our Nation and again shown why we are still the land of the FREE and the home of the BRAVE. Congratulations President Trump.

~Today in Boxing History~

JUNE 10, 2016: Exactly 70 years ago today in 1946, Jack Johnson (who some call the original Muhammad Ali) dies in a car accident in North Carolina. America's first black heavyweight champion of the boxing world, Johnson faced overt racism and daily discrimination throughout his troubled life and times, ultimately resulting in exile from his own country. You see, unlike Ali, Johnson went with white women and this infuriated white men. An international boxing hall of famer and an American original, Johnson still stands convicted of race crimes. His family still awaits a Presidential pardon. President Barack Obama gave an excellent speech commemorating the life of Muhammad Ali this week. Pardoning Jack Johnson would be an ideal way to honor both revolutionary black lives before leaving the White House. Rest in Peace great champions. Ali is being buried today in Louisville, Kentucky on the 70th annversary of Johnson's death, a heavyweight championship coincidence.